£7m to be slashed from police budget

Greater Manchester’s police budget is to be slashed by almost £7 million with savings expected to come from cutting waste and not frontline services, the Government has announced.

In February, GMP was told it would be given £253.2 million and a further £7.4 million as a capital grant for 2010/11. But as part of a £125million cut to forces across the country announced yesterday, GMP funding will be reduced to £246.8million and £6.9million.

Policing and Criminal Justice Minister Nick Herbert said that he expected chief constables to manage the cuts without affecting front-line services.

He said: “I am confident that savings of less than one per cent of expected spending by police authorities can be made while maintaining a frontline policing service.

“It is for chief constables to use their expertise and decide what makes most sense for their force, but I am quite clear that this saving can be achieved by driving out wasteful spending, reducing bureaucracy and increasing efficiency in key functions, leaving the frontline of policing strong and secure.”

GMP Chief Constable Peter Fahy said that the force had been preparing for cuts and are looking at where savings can be made. He added: “This is about putting GMP in the best possible position to face the future, to improve the service we provide, ensure we are reducing crime and increasing public confidence, and meet the targets in the Policing Plan. We are continuing to work with staff associations to keep the workforce informed and involved in identifying improvements we can make in this period of change.”